Hogwarts Legacy (opens in new tab) offers more than 100 side quests, not just something different for players to do when they need a break. Narrative Director Moira Squier told GamesRadar (opens in new tab) that the way players tackle side quests can have an impact on the main campaign.

"The main story is complex and fascinating, with many different characters and points of view, but by giving players choices throughout the game, they can tell that epic story themselves," Squier said. [Even the more than 100 side quests a player experiences can manipulate the main campaign. Interacting with someone in a side quest will influence their interaction with that person in the main story and vice versa. The order in which players complete these quests affects their story and the game. Everything is interconnected."

While these comments from the studio are just vague and not satisfying because they are well rehearsed (don't you just love "manipulating" the game with your character's "experience"?), it is nevertheless interesting that Hogwarts Legacy allows players to express themselves through dark magic by It is interesting that it allows them to express themselves. Players who wish to embrace evil are free to do so, and apparently will not be punished for it, except for the occasional little glare from NPCs.

"It was important to us to give players who wanted to become dark witches or wizards the opportunity to do so. This is the ultimate embodiment of role-playing, allowing players to be evil." It was also important to us that this came from a place where the game creators did not criticize. If you want to be evil, be evil." [This extends to the so-called Unforgivable Curse (opens in new tab), a trio of spells so sinister and forbidden that at the time of the Harry Potter novels, using any of these spells meant a one-way ticket to Azkaban prison. In the Hogwarts Legacy, however, this is apparently not such a big deal.

"Characters react visually and audibly when players cast 'Unforgivable,' but there is no moral system that punishes them for it.

"But if the player continues to act this way, the world will reflect that knowledge.

Given that the Harry Potter novels are very straightforward tales of good and evil, it seems more appropriate to judge the use of these particular curses by literal children. In other words, we are not talking about Leviosa's failure here: these spells are specific to mind control, torture, and murder. These spells are specialized for mind control, torture, and murder, and are literally called "unforgivable."

While it is true that many other games give players the option to pursue evil paths, actions have consequences: shitty behavior leads to shitty consequences. (Despite Harry Potter author JK Rowling's relentless backlash against transphobia (opens in new tab), Hogwarts Legacy is the most wishlisted game on Steam (opens in new tab).

Hogwarts Legacy will be released on February 10.